Hearthside

Loki had been away from Asgard for some time. He had been with the Jötunn woman Angrboda. When he returned to Asgard to Odin's hall he had with him 3 children. There was Jormungandr, a great serpent. The gods saw him and were fearful. They cast him into the sea and there he grew ever longer until he wound his scaly body around the world. It was said that Jormungandr would defeat Thor at Ragnarok. The second child was Fenrir, a great Wolf. And again the gods had a foreboding, for they had heard that he would kill Odin at Ragnarok. Unlike Jormungandr, they wished to keep him close so they could keep an eye on him as he grew. But only Tyr was brave enough to go to him and be in his company. Only Tyr would bring him food and watch him tear the neat with his terrible teeth. The third child was a girl, Hel, who was beautiful and fair to look at until she turned her head, and then you saw into death. Odin felt pity for her, and was not as afraid of her as the other two. Still, he reasoned...

Depending on your background, you may be familiar with the omnis. (Omnipotence, Omniscience, Omnipresence, and Omnibenevolence). Back when I was just an itty bitty pagan in college I first got introduced to these concepts in my 2nd year Philosophy course on Metaphysics. Now, my understanding from the content I have come across is that the omnis are a christian concept, or at least a monotheistic concept. That makes sense, because they really only fit into a monotheistic worldview. However, I really found building my understanding of the omnis helped me to understand my own worldview better and to express my thoughts about it.  So the basics, in case you aren’t familiar with these concepts: Omnipotence - The belief that gods are all powerful Omniscience - The belief that gods are all knowing Omnipresence - The belief that gods are all present (everywhere at once) Omnibenevolence - The belief that gods are all good In my philosophy course my professor posed the argument that god ...

I was recently watching a video by Arith Härger entitled “Animism: The Trickster Spirit.” In it Arith is talking about what the purpose of Trickster spirits are in lore from around the world. Of course he is using Loki as an example in this context. However, it had me revisiting one of my recurring thoughts about Odin and how he sometimes also plays a Trickster role in the lore.  Odin is able to shapeshift into animals, but also disguise his own appearance to men, and the Jotunn, and even his own son, Thor. It is always through a mix of wile and charm that he gets his way. Odin disguises himself as Gagnráðr to challenge Vafþrúðnir, wisest of the Jotunn in a battle of wits. In another story Odin disguises himself as Grimnir to check his foster-son Geirroth’s hospitality in a wager with Frigg. Further on in the Poetic Edda, Odin disguises himself as Greybeard, a ferryman, and taunts Thor. In the Prose Edda Odin takes on the persona of Bölverkr to gain access to the mead of poetry. T...